The Netherlands provides a great ‘Work-Life Balance’
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has identified the Netherlands as the third-best country in which to live, in regards to ‘Work-Life Balance’. In the organisation’s Better Life Index 2011 report, the nation performs very well overall, also scoring nine-out-of-ten in the ‘Life Satisfaction’ survey.
Balancing family with career
Contributing to the Netherlands’ excellent ‘Work-Life Balance’ is the fact that women are able to successfully combine family life with career development. Seventy-five percent of mothers with children of school-going-age are employed – typically part-time. This also helps to explain why the Dutch work on average 1,378 hours per year – the lowest national rate calculated by the OECD.
In terms of ‘Work-Life Balance’, only Denmark and Norway surpass the Netherlands in the results of this report. In order to measure the ‘Work-Life Balance’, the OECD took into account three key variables: the employment rate of women with children, the number employees working long hours, and the amount of time devoted to leisure and personal care.
Quality of life
A good ‘Work-Life Balance’ is a crucial factor when it comes to a person’s quality of living. It is therefore no surprise that the Netherlands is also renowned for its outstanding quality of life. Last year’s Gallup World Poll measured two types of well-being throughout 155 countries worldwide, ranking the Netherlands as the fourth happiest nation in the world. The majority of Dutch people are also very satisfied with their lives, reflected by a 91% positive result in the OECD’s ‘Life Satisfaction’ survey.
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